Ashley's POV

Everyone pauses, thoroughly confused by Ibiki's sudden announcement. Hell, even I'm confused. How can we have passed when we haven't even heard the tenth question yet? Is Ibiki just messing with us or something?......

Slapping her hand down on her desk, Sakura rises to her feet, a look of both indignance and confusion on her face.

"What?!" she screeches for what feels like the fortieth time today. "What do you mean we pass?! What about the tenth question?"

Ibiki begins chuckling to himself at this, the tiny grin that spreads across his face sending a shiver up my spine.

'He looks so creepy when he smiles......' I think to myself, scrunching up my nose a little.

"There never was a tenth question" Ibiki announces with a laugh. "I guess you could say that deciding to stay was your answer to the tenth question."

"Huh?" Sakura replies, tilting her head to the side.

"Wait just a minute!" an angry voice calls out, as everyone turns to face the blonde girl from the Sand Village. "Are you telling us that the first nine questions were a complete waste of time?!"

"No, not at all" Ibiki answers, shaking his head. "It's quite the opposite actually. The first nine questions had a very fundamental purpose. They were to test your ability to secretly gather strategic information under the most arduous circumstances."

'Well' I think sarcastically, looking at the unsure faces of people around me, 'Doesn't that just clear everything up?'

"My intention was to not only test you as individuals" Ibiki explains to us, "But as a group, and how well you behave as a team. That is why your scores were scored on a team basis. You knew that everything you did, or failed to do, would affect your teammates. I needed to see how you would all handle the pressure."

"Yeah, I knew it was something like that" Naruto nods wisely, "That's why I was able to stay so cool the whole time."

From my seat at the back of the room, I see Sakura clench her jaw as she glares daggers at the back of Naruto's head. There's not a doubt in my mind that Naruto has been silently freaking out the entire time. I have to wonder if he even managed to answer one question on the test....

"As you may have noticed" Ibiki speaks up again, waving his hand at us, "The questions in your tests were far too difficult for most Genin to be able to answer. I'd imagine that most of you quickly came to the conclusion that you'd need to cheat to be able to get any answers. Truth be told, this test is designed to encourage you to do just that. In fact, it pretty much demands that you cheat."

"Of course, what good would it have done you if you had no one to cheat from?" Ibiki asks us all rhetorically. "So, I had two Chuunin who already know the answers disguise themselves and take the test with you."

Glancing around the room, I see two young men, no doubt using a Transformation Jutsu to look younger, grin and wave at the rest of us.

'That's actually pretty smart' I think, smirking and crossing my arms. 'It's the perfect way to weed out the ones who aren't able to gather intelligence well. The test also shows who can and can't handle the pressure of gathering information while under strict surveillance. This guy's pretty crafty......'

"Haha!" Naruto suddenly laughs out loud, catching my attention. "I wasn't fooled for a second! You'd have o be a complete idiot not to see it!....Isn't that right Hinata?"

As Naruto turns to the now blushing girl for confirmation, she drops her eyes and nods timidly, not wanting to draw attention to herself.

"I knew it" I sigh out loud. "This whole time, he didn't even understand the test......."

"Those who were caught cheating failed the test" Ibiki continues, now fiddling with the bandana covering his head. "It is better not to cheat at all, than to cheat badly and get caught."

Ibiki removes his bandana, the sight before us causing a few of the other Genin to gasp in horror. I narrow my eyes at the many horrific scars and slash marks across Ibiki's head and neck, wondering what exactly he'd done wrong to receive such bad injuries.

I've definitely seen worse in my short life, but those wounds don't look like they were fun to receive at all......

"Information can be one of the most valuable weapons in battle" Ibiki informs us seriously, not bothered by people's reactions to his scars. "How well you are able to gather information can be what deems your mission as a failure or success."

I see a few Genin avert their eyes or turn their heads away, not wanting to look at Ibiki's injuries any longer. They'd best get used to that sort of thing though, if they're serious about becoming Ninja.

Glancing back at our proctor, I can't help wondering about his scars again. Judging by what he's telling us, I can only assume he failed a mission to recover information from enemies and was tortured by them. Pretty viciously too by the looks of it....

"Sometimes you'll have to risk your very life to get information" Ibiki tells us seriously.

"Of course, you must always keep in consideration, the source of your information."

Here Ibiki pauses, reaching up to retie his bandana back around his head.

"Intelligence that you gather from an enemy will not necessarily be accurate" the muscular man warns us. "Always remember that wrong information can be worse than no information at all. It can lead to the deaths of your teammates, or the destruction of a Village. That is why you were put in a situation where you had to cheat to survive. Those who weren't good enough were weeded out."

"Okaaaay......." the blonde Sand Ninja says slowly, her brows furrowed. "But I still don't get what the whole tenth question thing is about."

"Oh come on......" I breathe exasperatedly. "It's really not that hard to understand if you just use your brain."

"You're not?" Ibiki asks incredulously. "The tenth question is the point of this whole Exam. Surely you understand that?"

"Uh, sure" Sakura laughs sheepishly, obviously not understanding either, "But maybe you should just explain it anyway...."

'All of these brainless Genin are beginning to irritate me' Hakuba mutters lowly, as Ibiki sighs and continues trying to explain his point. 'I want to kill them all.'

'Too bad you're powerless' I reply snidely, causing the Demon to growl at me angrily.

'Though I may be imprisoned inside you' Hakuba seethes, ' I am hardly powerless.......Or do you need to be reminded of that again ?'

'The worst you can do is give me a headache' I retort, pushing my luck with the irritated Demon. I shouldn't make him angry, but sometimes I just can't help it. We don't really tend to get along most of the time.

'You insolent little brat' Hakuba snarls, his frustration and annoyance increasing. 'I am a deity, and you would be nothing without me! Without me, you would be a powerless little girl who stumbles around in the dark. You would have no clue how to fit into this miserable world. You would live your pathetic life being hurt and betrayed by every other deplorable human on this plan-'

'Heh, apart from the weak part' I interrupt, a humorless smirk finding its way onto my face, 'I'm already there Hakuba.'

'Oh, you think you're already there?' Hakuba questions darkly, a sick glimmer in his eyes. 'Believe me brat, I could make your life so much wor-'

Cutting Hakuba off before he can finish his threat, I look up in surprise as a woman suddenly crashes into the room through a closed window. She lands easily on the floor as glass shatters around her, the woman raising one hand to fix her purple hair, which is pulled back into a spiky ponytail that sticks straight up.

Why couldn't she come in through the door, like a normal person? How is she not hurt from smashing through all of that glass anyway?

"Heads up guys and girls!" the woman announces, her large, brown eyes traveling over everyone in the room. "This is no time to be celebrating, because I'm Anko Mitarashi, and I'm your next proctor! If you guys are ready for the next Exam, then follow me!"

I feel my eyebrow twitch as this Anko lady grins manically at us and punches a fist into the air, resisting the urge to face palm. I'm already getting the feeling that this woman is a nutcase, and I'm not sure how I feel about her being in charge of us....

"You're early again" Ibiki informs Anko flatly, causing the woman to blink in surprise, before she grins sheepishly at him.

"There are still so many of them left" she mumbles, studying us all disapprovingly as she turns to Ibiki. "I think your test was too easy.....Heh, you must be getting soft."

"Or" Ibiki adds pointedly, "It's a stronger group of competitors this year."

"Ha, they sure don't look it!" Anko decides, making me frown a little. "Oh well, by the time I'm done with this bunch, more than half of em will be gone anyway."

"Eek!" Sakura squeals in disbelief. "More than half of us?.....Really?"

"Heheh......This is gonna be so much fun....." Anko mutters to herself with a creepy smirk, before turning to us with a grin. "Alright, you good for nothings have had it easy so far! But things are sure gonna be different for you first thing tomorrow morning! I'll let all of your Squad Leaders know when and where you need to meet me. You're dismissed!"

I stare at the scene ahead of me through hooded eyes, a cool breeze blowing through the surrounding trees and making them rustle loudly. In front of me, a dark forest surrounded by a high wire fence looms eerily, the thick trees stretching high into the sky. The foliage is so thick, it's impossible to see more than a few metres into the forest, leaving its insides shrouded in darkness and shadows.

"Whooaa........" Naruto breathes, staring into the creepy forest with wide eyes. "What is this place?"

"This is the place that the second Exam will take place in" Anko announces, making her way through the crowd of Genin and stopping right in front of the wire fence before us. It's the forty fourth Battle Training Zone, also known as the Forest of Death."

"A fitting name....." I mutter, as Naruto shivers.

"The Forest of D-Death?" he repeats nervously, clearly not comforted by the dark grin on Anko's face.

"I do believe that's what she just called it" I tell Naruto dryly, jabbing the blonde in the ribs and making him jump. "Except, she didn't stutter like you."

"I'm not afraid" Naruto informs me defensively, to which I just raise an eyebrow and nod slowly, not believing him one bit.

A faint tingle suddenly runs up my spine, almost making me shiver as I turn my head. My brows furrow a little as my eyes meet those of the Grass Ninja with long, black hair I caught staring at me before our written Exam.

As soon as she sees that I've noticed her look, she sends me a quick, almost invisible smile, before turning her attention back to the still talking Anko.

Though I am usually not one to be goaded into a fight, this Grass Ninja had better watch her back, because there's something very suspicious about her. She gives me a strange vibe and I really don't like it. I'm not afraid of her, there's just........Something weird about her....And the way she keeps looking at me.

If she crosses me, I'm going to kill her.

Looking away from the weird Grass Ninja, I glance at Sakura who is, no surprise, complaining about something.

"....And seriously, why is this place so creepy?" she squeaks, looking around nervously. "It's freaking me out already!"

I roll my eyes as Anko grins at Sakura, briefly wondering why the pinkette had bothered to become a Ninja in the first place.

"It should freak you out" Anko assures Sakura cheerfully. "It's called the Forest of Death for a good reason.....But you'll find that out soon enough."

Sakura looks as though she's going to be sick, as Naruto lets out a huff and sticks his ass out, placing his hands on his hips.

"But you'll find out soon enough!" the blonde mocks in a high voice, shaking his hips around ridiculously. I can't even help face palming at his little display, as Sakura and Sasuke blink in surprise, slowly backing away from our teammate.

"Do your worst!" Naruto challenges, fire burning in his blue eyes. "I can handle anything you throw at me!"

"Well, well" Anko chuckles, reaching into the sleeve of her jacket, "Looks like we've got a tough guy in our midst!"

Pulling out a kunai, Anko swiftly flings it directly at Naruto. His eyes widen as the sharp knife grazes his cheek, leaving a thin line of blood across it, before it sticks into the dirt behind him.

Anko then darts forwards, disappearing from sight and quickly reappearing behind him. Sakura lets out a gasp at Anko's speed, her eyes no doubt, like a lot of people here, not being able to keep up with her fast movements.

"So, you think you're tough enough to handle this?" Anko whispers in the still surprised Naruto's ear. "Guys like you are always the ones who leave their blood all over this forest."

That said, Anko reaches up and wipes the blood from Naruto's cheek with one finger, before she suddenly pulls out another kunai and whirls around, brandishing the weapon.

The creepy Grass Ninja who was staring at me takes a step back, apparently not having expected Anko's quick reaction to her presence.

I stare at the Grass Ninja through wide eyes, through my brows are furrows and I'm struggling not to growl out loud. I feel my heart beginning to pound in my chest, my breaths coming quicker now than before.

The Grass Ninja has Anko's kunai wrapped up with her long, forked tongue, and I only know of one person who is able to do something like that. It.....It can't be him though....It can't be him.....

But.......But Kabuto is here as well, so this couldn't just be a coincidence.......Could it? I certainly hope that it's merely a coincidence, but that would explain why that Grass Ninja keeps staring at me.....

"I was just trying to return your kunai" the girl informs Anko lowly.

"Oh, well thank you" the purple haired woman replies with an unfriendly smile, as she takes the kunai back. "By the way, you probably don't want to approach me from behind while wielding a kunai. Not unless you have an early death wish anyway."

The Grass Ninja's gross, long tongue retracts back into her mouth, before she grins darkly at Anko.

"My apologies" she says softly, eyes slowly drifting across the other Genin and resting on Sasuke, who is too busy scowling at Naruto to notice. "I guess I just got a little.....Over excited because of the blood and the kunai slicing through my hair. I meant you no harm......"

My icy gaze follows the Grass Ninja as she turns and heads back over to her team, my hands shaking a little. I take in her outfit, cursing myself for not previously noting the tiny similarities between the girl's clothing and Orochimaru's. It has to be him. I'm almost one hundred percent sure now.....

'Dammit!' I curse internally, gritting my teeth together as I try to regain my cool. 'I hope he's not here for me.......No, there's no way he'd be here for me......I mean, I left him a few months ago now. Surely he's moved on to bigger and better things now?....'

I have to look away from the Grass Ninja, the very sight of her now striking a small amount of fear into me. I'm ashamed to even admit this to myself, but I'm nervous about this Exam now. I don't want to come across that fake Grass Ninja inside the Forest of Death. That's one fight I don't want to happen.....

I decide to keep my suspicions to myself, not wanting anyone to think I'm crazy or worse, I could be wrong....I hope I'm wrong......And besides, it's not like I care for anyone here, so why would I warn them? He can kill all of the others for all I care.

'It certainly seems like you're trying very hard to convince yourself that you don't care' Hakuba's voice faintly floats through my mind, making me scowl. 'Don't be stupid. Don't let them in.......'

Briefly closing my eyes, I exhale a deep breath and raise my head, focusing my attention back on Anko, who is now holding up a thick stack of papers.

"These here are consent forms" the purple haired Shinobi explains, nodding at them. "You'll all need to read over and sign them before you begin this test."

"Uhhh, why?" Naruto asks, to which Anko sends him a cheerful closed eye smile.

"Because some of you won't be coming back from this test" she laughs, as is the whole thing is just one big joke, "And I need your consent for that. I don't want to be the one held responsible for your deaths! Now come and grab a form. I'll explain what this test is going to entail as you all get one."

Anko hands a small stack of the forms to Naruto, to which he takes one and passes them onto me. I also take a form and hand the papers over to Sakura, skim reading the many paragraphs of writing in front of me.

"This Exam is designed to test every one of your survival skills" Anko informs us, being serious for once. I tune the woman out as the other Genin all receive their consent forms, with Shikamaru sighing heavily at the sight of it. Ino screws up her face, clearly unhappy with what she's reading, as Hinata's already pale face seems to drain of all colour.

I see Rock Lee's big eyes shining with excitement, while Tenten sweat drops and Neji just stands with one hand on his hip, pale eyes hooded as he reads the paper in his other hand.

I hear bits and pieces of what Anko explains to us, getting the basic gist of the whole Exam. Each team has to get their hands on both a scroll marked Heaven and another marked Earth. Once a team has both scrolls, they need to head to the tower in the center of the forest. Each team will only be given one scroll in the beginning however, with fifty percent receiving the Heaven scroll and the other fifty percent receiving an Earth scroll.

One thing I definitely like about this test, is that there are no rules. It's pretty much an anything goes battle royale, which is much more my style. Assuming we don't run into the Grass Ninja team, this test could definitely be fun!

"Oh yeah!" Anko cries, apparently remembering something. "You guys have to finish the test within the time limit, which is five days."

"What!?" Ino shrieks in horror, stepping forwards. "Five days in there?!"

"What're we gonna do for food?" Choji asks urgently, looking more terrified of the thought of no food than having to possibly fight to the death.

"Pshhhh, just look around you" Anko scoffs, dismissing his concern with a wave of her hand. "There's plenty of food for all of you to find."

"Yeah" Kabuto agrees, sweat dropping, "But there are also man eating beasts and poisonous plants in there....."

Yeah, he'd know, considering he's already done this so many times. I hope he gets eaten by one of those animals.

"Awwww man...." Choji complains, hanging his head in despair.

"Man eating beasts huh?" I wonder out loud, briefly flicking my eyes over to the alleged Grass Ninja. Does he count as one of those?

I internally sigh as I spot Kiba pushing his way through the crowd towards me, my shoulders drooping a little. I really can't be bothered with this jerk right now.....

As soon as he reaches me, Kiba slings an arm across my shoulders and clenches his free hand into a fist.

"Don't worry Angel" the idiot assures me determinedly, "If you're afraid in there, I'll protect you. I'm not afraid of anything. I'm too strong for that."

Turning my head to give Kiba a deadpan look, the brunette sends me a cheeky wink.

"We wouldn't want anything ruining that pretty face of yours now would we?" he asks me with a laugh.

Pulling away from Kiba I whirl around and smack my fist into my palm, threatening to punch him.

"And what if I ruin your pretty face right now?" I snap, making Kiba back up a little. He tilts his head in thought and looks up at the sky for a few moments, before glancing back at me and grinning evilly.

"You think my face is pretty?" he questions smartly, making me blink a couple of times.

".....You asked for it" I growl under my breath, an anime vein appearing on the side of my head. Just as I move to leap at Kiba, Sakura quickly dives forwards and holds me back, not wanting me to get into a fight.

I slowly turn my head and look back at the pinkette over my shoulder, glaring from the corner of my eye. She lets out a squeal and immediately releases me, stumbling backwards as I grin nastily and dust myself off.

"You're lucky for two reasons" I inform Sakura meanly. "One, you really have no chance of holding me back and two, you moved out of my killing zone just in time."

Sakura doesn't say anything, just looking at me through frightened eyes.

"Anyway" Anko sighs, "This is supposed to be a gruelling test you guys. I bet most of you aren't up for the challenge."

Looking less than enthusiastic, Shikamaru tentatively raises a hand.

"So uh....." he begins, not waiting to be called on, "Are we allowed to quit at any point?

"Of course not!" Anko scoffs, her tone sounding somewhat mocking. "In the middle of a fight you can't just say, oh sorry, I quit.....Well, you could, but it'd probably get you killed anyway."

"Oh well that's just great" Shikamaru mutters sarcastically. "No way out. This is gonna be such a drag....."

We all pay attention as Anko explains the few ways we can get disqualified from the Exam, including peeking inside our scrolls, before Ino decides to interrupt.

"Hey!" the platinum blonde screeches, jabbing her hand at my team and I accusingly. "They've got one more person on their team than everyone else! That's not fair, they have an advantage over the rest of us!"

Feeling annoyed by Ino's uneducated accusation and purely because I don't like her, I answer her before Anko even has a chance to.

"Actually you dumb bitch" I snap rudely, not caring if I offend her or not, "We're at a disadvantage with an extra person."

"Oh yeah?" Ino asks, looking a little unnerved by my cold stare, though she manages to keep her tone strong. "How so?"

"If you had've been listening, you would know that every team member has to make it to the tower alive" I retort. "You only have three people on your team, while we have to worry about four people making it. To put it simply for you, we have the added burden of keeping one extra person alive than you guys. So shut that big, annoying mouth of yours and use your brain."

I scowl at Ino as she averts her teal eyes, unhappy that I'd proven her wrong. Sakura stares at Ino with a big, smug grin on her face, clearly happy that her enemy had been put back in her place.

I can't help rolling my eyes at this. I have no interest in choosing sides in Sakura and Ino's little war, and I certainly didn't snap at Ino to help my teammate. Ino is just even more irritating than Sakura.

"Okay, so sign your forms and hand them in people" Anko picks up where she left off. "In exchange, you'll be given a scroll. Once you have your scroll, go and line up at a fate in the fence okay? Oh, and one more word of advice......Don't die!"

"Oh" I mutter wryly, shaking my head as my team and I turn around, "I'm so glad she suggested that, because I'd been planning on dying in there up until she said not to."

Naruto chuckles to himself at that, while Sasuke smirks and Sakura just smiles nervously. Leaning my back against a tree, I turn my attention to the form in my hands, as Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto all find their owns spots to go over their papers as well.

After a few moments, I look up boredly, not overly caring what the form has to say. I'm not too concerned about dying inside the forest, considering the low skill level of the people around me. As long as I avoid the Grass Ninja, I'll come out of this alive and well.

Not too far behind the tree I'm leaning against, I can hear Sakura and Ino arguing already. As their annoying voices get louder and louder, I sigh irritably and make my way over, wanting to shut them up. Stopping right behind Choji and Shikamaru, who are watching the bickering girls with flat expressions, I can't help the way my eyebrow begins twitching.

Honestly, how immature are these two supposed Kunoichi? They give us all a bad name. I mean, they're just arguing about who is uglier than who.....

"Maybe someone should just tell them that they're both ugly" I suggest dryly, causing Choji and Shikamaru to jump. Clearly they didn't hear me walking over, though I suppose it would be hard to hear anything over Sakura and Ino's loud fight.

"Oh, hey Ashley" Shikamaru greets apathetically, placing a hand to his forehead. "To be honest, I don't think I have the guts to face their wrath."

"Those two are crazy sometimes...." Choji agrees, sweat dropping as both girls' eyes blaze with fire.

"Fine" I sigh, pushing past the two boys. "I'll do it then."

I march up to the squabbling girls and place a firm hand on each of their shoulders. They both freeze, dragging their angry eyes over to my face.

"There's really no need to fight over who's uglier" I inform Sakura and Ino seriously, glaring between the both of them. "Do you want to know why?"

"Why?" they both demand to know, causing a mischievous grin to appear on my face, sharp teeth visible.

"Because you're both really ugly" I inform the girls, making them both gasp, eyes widening.

"No way!" Ino shouts indignantly, a number of small anime veins appearing on the side of her head. "I'm so much prettier than you Sakura!"

"Nuh uh!" Sakura huffs, raising her fist in Ino's face. "You're so ugly that even the tide wouldn't bring you in Ino!"

I throw my hands up in exasperation, despite Sakura's amusing comeback. How are girls like these ever going to become Ninja? Physical appearance won't help you when you're fighting for your life. They need to learn to stop caring so much about how they look and spend more time training their bodies and minds. Wearing lip gloss and fussing with hair has never helped any Kunoichi in battle before.

"They're too stupid to stop arguing" I informs Shikamaru and Choji stonily, to which Shikamaru shrugs a shoulder.

"Better people than you have tried to make them shut up" he drawls, to which I raise an eyebrow and place my hands on my hips.

"Are you telling me I'm not good enough?" I question, to which Shikamaru blinks in realization and begins shaking his head vigorously.

"No, no!" the dark haired male assures me hastily. "That's not what I meant! I just meant that, oh man, what a drag.....I was just trying to uh, say that, well, you know-"

Giving Shikamaru an amused look, I hold up one hand, silencing his flustered babbling.

"I was kidding" I say flatly, to which Shikamaru sighs deeply and runs a hand down his face.

"Oh....." is all he says in reply.

"Alright" Anko announces, motioning for people to get moving, "Every team now has their scroll. Head to a free gate and when it opens, the test will begin!"

Joining up with the rest of my team, we make our way over to the nearest gate that doesn't already have a squad waiting at it. As we head over to a free gate, we pass Team Eight, able to hear Kiba's voice even from here.

"Yeah!" he barks enthusiastically, grinning at Shino and Hinata. "We rock at survival you guys, so there's no way we can lose! Hinata, you gotta be strong for this, okay?"

"Yes, you're right Kiba-kun" the quite girl replies with a faint smile, twiddling her fingers. "I-I'll do my best...."

We stroll past Team Eight, with me sincerely hoping Kiba won't notice us, but of course fate has other ideas, and he spins around to wave at us.

"Hey, good luck in there Angel!" Kiba shouts, making me cringe. "As for the rest of you, hope ya all die!"

Naruto turns back and scowls at the now laughing Kiba, while Sasuke merely rolls his eyes, not bothering to respond to the brown haired trouble maker. Sakura latches onto the back of Naruto's shirt and drags him along, clamping one hand over his mouth to keep the blonde from retorting.

I don't even bother looking at Kiba, hoping to run into him inside the Forest of Death so that I can just drop a boulder on him or something.

We reach a gate number twelve, only to see a tall, sharp eyed Ninja standing in front of it to prevent us from starting early. He glances at us briefly, before looking away, clearly not interested in a bunch of Genin.

"Bring it on Ninja!" Naruto cries excitedly, as he begins savagely punching at the air in front of him. "I'll just throw it all right back in your face, and then some!"

"Wow, I bet they're all scared now" I mutter sarcastically, earning myself a narrow eyed look from Naruto. I just raise an eyebrow back, as if to say what?

"Alright losers!" we hear Anko call. "The second part of the Chuunin Exams has officially begun!"

We all bend our knees, with Sakura letting out a nervous breath and Naruto swallowing thickly. Staring hard at the gate before us, I can just about feel the hearts of my teammates racing, unsure of what we're going to encounter inside the Forest of Death. As long as it's not a pretend Grass Ninja, I don't care what we come across.....

As soon as the Ninja guarding our gate pushes a button to make it swing open, we all dart inside, with every other team doing the same thing.

As soon as we enter the forest, with myself in the lead, we find ourselves shrouded in darkness, the thickness of the trees high above blocking out just about every shred of light. Gnarled bushes line the forest floor, with bulky vines and over hanging branches threatening to claw at our hair and clothes.

The air inside the forest is very cool, the sudden change in temperature causing my skin to break out into goosebumps. Aside from the sound of our footsteps and breaths, the forest around us is eerily silent. Clearly there are no man eating beasts near us yet.

After only a few minutes of running, we all freeze at the sound of three people screaming rips through the quietness of the forest. I sigh and crouch down on a large rock, as the others slowly and carefully gaze around.

"That sounded like people screaming...." a scared Sakura whispers, standing unusually close to Naruto, her eyes wide.

My head snaps up at this, an exasperated look on my face.

"Oh, did it Sakura?" I can't resist asking, my tone mocking. "I'm glad you told us all that, because I wouldn't have known it was people screaming if you hadn't."

Not thinking clearly due to her nerves, Sakura turns around and glares at me, her mouth pulled down into an unappreciative frown.

"Now is not the time for sarcasm Ashley" she scolds quietly, to which Sasuke nods.

"Yeah, she's right" he agrees lowly. "We should keep moving."

I watch as my three teammates carefully traipse past me, my eyes hooded.

'Yes King Sasuke' I think, being nice to my team by keeping my sarcastic remark to myself, 'Let's all just obey you.'

Rising to my feet, I glance in the direction the screams had come from, before jumping down from the rock and following behind Naruto. I can sense Kiba's team over in the same direction as the screaming, and there are three people who seem to be......Struggling? I'm not sure why, but their movements are very sharp and panicked.

'Hmm, looks like Team Eight has already taken down another squad......' I think to myself. 'Maybe they're better than they seem.'

"......I really don't like this place" Sakura says softly, watching a large Centipede scuttle up a tree beside her and shivering.

"Ahh don't worry about it" Naruto encourages brightly, "It's gonna be a piece of cake!"

Suddenly stopping in front of me and pulling a face, Naruto quickly darts off to the left, fiddling with the zipper of his orange pants.

"Hold on a sec guys!" he calls over his shoulder. "Scuse me, But I really gotta-"

"Not in front of us girls you don't!" Sakura shouts indignantly, rushing over to Naruto and bashing him over the head. "Go and find a bush or something!"

I sweat drop and pull a face of disgust as Naruto stalks off, mumbling under his breath. Sakura pokes out her tongue and shakes her head, also grossed out by Naruto wanting to take a bathroom break right in front of us. Sasuke ignores us all, looking up into the trees as we all wait in silence.

Feeling a brief scuffle taking place over to my left, I slowly turn my head, curious as to what is going on. Before I can ponder it for too long, Naruto suddenly walks out of the bushes, letting out a relieved sigh.

I narrow my eyes slightly as he grins brightly, something about the blonde making me feel a little strange. I don't know what it is but.......

"Phewwww!" Naruto breathes, before letting out a laugh. "I don't think I could've held that in for much longer!"

'Wait......Where did it go?' I wonder, my eyes widening. I stare at Naruto as Sakura stomps over to him, bending my knees. 'It can't have just disappeared.'

"Naruto, you're such a pig!" Sakura screams, making me internally sigh. Yeah, way to let everyone in the near vicinity know where we are Sakura. It's like having a siren blaring and announcing specific instructions to our very location....

Glancing over at Sasuke, I see him eyeing Naruto strangely as well, his dark eyes filled with suspicion. Well, that's good enough for me!

I dart forwards, suddenly appearing in front of Naruto and kicking him under the chin, sending the blonde flying straight up into a tree. Sakura gasps as I rise to my feet and glare up at Naruto, with Sasuke still watching him intently.

"What are you doing Ashley?" Sakura reprimands. "Don't you think you're overreacting a little? What he did wasn't that bad...."

"Yeah!" Naruto barks, raising a fist at me, crouching on the branch he'd landed on. "What was that for?!"

Affirming that Sasuke is also wary of Naruto, the Uchiha bounds up into the tree and throws a kick at Naruto, though the blonde is able to dodge it and drops down to a lower branch. Diving for him, Sasuke sends Naruto rocketing to the ground with a quick follow up kick to the chest. Sakura gasps again as the blonde crashes into earth, sending up a small cloud of dust.

"Sasuke?!" Sakura squeaks, sounding afraid. Naruto coughs a little, slowly pushing himself to his feet and eyeing both Sasuke and I carefully.

"Better watch out Sakura" Naruto warns the pinkette seriously, "I think they've gone crazy!"

"Don't you wish?" Sasuke replies rhetorically, glancing at me as I settle myself down onto a rock, arms folded over my chest. I watch the scene before me carelessly, no longer concerned with the Naruto imposter.

I only attacked him because I thought it could be Orochimaru using a Transformation Jutsu. I'm now sure that it's not him however, considering the bad reaction time and amateurish Transformation Jutsu. I don't care about this fight anymore. I'll just let the mighty Sasuke handle it.

Naruto and Sasuke suddenly dash towards each other, brandishing kunai knives and slashing at each other with them.

"Sasuke, what are you doing?" Sakura calls, looking utterly confused.

"Take a good look at Naruto" the ravenette instructs, dodging Naruto as the blonde tries to stab him in the stomach. I blink slowly as Sakura tilts her head, not understanding the issue here. Surely it should be obvious to a good Ninja?

"What have you done with the real Naruto?!" Sasuke shouts, blocking another jab from Naruto.

"Huh?" Sakura asks, making me shake my head with disapproval.

"I am Naruto!" the blonde shouts back frustratedly, throwing his arms out to the side. Deciding to help Sakura out a bit, I lazily raise a hand and point at Naruto.

"Oh yeah?" I ask boredly. "Then where'd the cut on your cheek go?"

The Naruto look alike pauses at that, unsure of what to say. What an amateur.....A good Ninja takes note of all major and minor details if they want to pull off a convincing Transformation Jutsu.

"Looks like you didn't notice that the real Naruto got a cut on his cheek just before this test" Sasuke scoffs, smirking a little. "Plus, the real Naruto is right handed, but you have your holster on your left leg!"

"Heh, you should really take more notice of small details like that" I add smugly, "Otherwise it's completely obvious to everyone that you're just a faker using a Jutsu."

Sasuke nods his agreement, before scowling at the fake Naruto.

"So, who are you?" he questions, just as the Naruto in front of us disappears in a puff of white smoke. As the smoke clears, we all see a Ninja from the Hidden Rain in his place.

"So what?" he barks nastily. "You guys caught me. Now hand over your scroll before I seriously hurt you!"

Sasuke and Sakura both take up defensive stances, with the pinkette also pulling out a kunai to defend herself with. I merely stretch out my legs and cross one over the other, watching on with mild interest.

"So, which one of you has it?" the Rain Ninja questions, looking at each of us in turn. "The black haired show off, the useless pinkette or the blonde midget over there?"

I narrow my eyes at the Rain Ninja, though I don't bother retorting. Yes, I am a little shorter than most girls my age, but that doesn't mean he should be taking me so lightly. I'll destroy him!

"Wouldn't you like to know?" I reply tauntingly, to which our enemy merely grunts.

"Fine" he says shortly, "I guess I'll just have to take you all out then!"

Darting past Sasuke and Sakura, the Rain Ninja focuses his eyes on me, probably thinking that I'm the weak link of the group. As aggravating as that is, I suppose that maybe I don't look very threatening, especially because I'm not very big.

I'll show him though......I'll just use his bad judgment against him.

Before I can do anything however, Sasuke suddenly appears between myself and the incoming Rain Ninja, hands already clasped together in a hand sign.

"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" the Uchiha shouts, before exhaling a volley of small fireballs. They head straight for our enemy, though he manages to evade all of them, causing Sasuke to scowl.

"Hey Sasuke" I address, making him glance back over his shoulder at me. "Aim better next time."

He gives me a strange look, squinting his eyes a little, before whirling around and meeting the Rain Ninja head on, their kunai knives clashing against each other loudly. As the Ninja leaps back from Sasuke, I feel something squirming around on the ground behind me.

Rising to my feet and turning around, one hand on my hip, I spot Naruto lying on the ground. Though he is partially covered by a large bush, I can see that he has been tied up with thick rope. He wriggles around furiously, looking like an angry worm in the dirt.

Suddenly looking up and seeing me watching him, a hopeful look crosses Naruto's face.

"Hey Ashley!" he calls out. "Could you please get me out of this?!"

Sighing lightly, I reach into my holster and pull out a kunai, flinging it at Naruto. It slashes right through the rope, coming very close to Naruto's skin, and sticks into the ground with a thunk.

"Thank you!" Naruto cries, bouncing up from the ground and running towards me to help Sasuke fight the Rain Ninja. Turning back around as a determined Naruto runs past me, I watch Sasuke pursue the Rain Ninja through the trees, dropping to a lower branch as a handful of shuriken are flung at him.

"A paper bomb?!" Sasuke cries out, spotting the small piece of paper stuck to the branch now above him. It immediately explodes, sending Sasuke flying towards the ground. He manages to flip around and land on one knee, small pieces of debris raining down around him.

"Nice reflexes" I mutter, though Sasuke hears and casts me a wary look. He's probably not sure if I'm being sarcastic or not, and to be honest, neither am I.

"Looks like this is one test you're gonna fail" the Rain Ninja sneers, suddenly appearing behind Sasuke. "Now hand over your scroll!"

"Sasuke?!" Sakura calls out, obviously distressed. Go Sakura, if you really want to help Sasuke out, that's the way to do it. Yell out his name!

Pausing for a moment, the Rain Ninja swiftly leaps up into the air, just as three kunai stick into the ground right where he'd been standing.

"Oh no you don't!" Naruto shouts, leaping down from a tree. He glances down at the kunai he'd thrown, probably disappointed that the enemy had managed to dodge them.

I watch curiously as flicks another kunai up at the Rain Ninja, distracting the male as he focuses chakra into his feet. As the Rain Ninja dodges to the right, Sasuke leaps up and plows into him from the side, managing to jab a kunai through the enemy's flesh.

"Sasuke" Sakura calls from the ground, "Are you alright?!"

Tilting my head to the side, I look up at Sasuke and see that he has his Sharingan activated. My brows furrow slightly, before Sasuke turns his attention down to Sakura and I.

"Don't just stand there you two!" he responds seriously. "Chances are that the rest of this guy's team isn't too far away!"

I shake my head, brushing Sasuke's warning off as Sakura glances around nervously.

"Thanks for the advice" I reply flatly, "But I'm perfectly safe right here. He couldn't do anything to me if he tried."

Pulling himself away from Sasuke, the Rain Ninja bounds over to a different tree, panting loudly.

"I came alone so as to not make you guys suspicious" he informs us in a strained voice. "Big mistake...."

That said, the enemy Ninja spins around on his heels, disappearing back into the forest and leaving us alone again. Sasuke glares after the guy, before sighing softly and dropping down to the ground, landing right in front of me.

"Well that was boring" I complain, causing Sasuke to frown at me over his shoulder, as if he's not quite sure what to think.

"So, that just proves that we can't only go by appearances" Sasuke says seriously, looking at each of us in turn. "We need to come up with a way to make sure we know how to tell if one of us is an imposter or not."

"Alright" Sakura agrees with a nod. "What should we do then?"

I cross my arms, feeling amused as I watch Naruto, the look of pure concentration on his face almost making me laugh. It looks as though he'll explode if he thinks much harder.

"......We need a secret password that only the four of us will know" Sasuke suggests after a few moments of silence. "And we shouldn't trust anyone that doesn't know it."

"Do you have any idea for a password?" Sakura questions, looking delighted when Sasuke gives her a curt nod.

"Yes, but listen closely" the Uchiha instructs, making me frown a little, "Because I only want to have to say it once. The question we have to ask each other will be, when does a Ninja strike? Got it?"

Naruto, Sakura and I nod, though mine is hardly as enthusiastic as the other two. I don't like it when Sasuke, or anyone really, tries to take charge like this.

"Good" the ravenette says. "The proper response will be, a Ninja waits until the time is right. When the enemy sleeps and drops his guard. When his weapons lay forgotten in the middle of the night. That is the moment for a Ninja to strike...."

I narrow my eyes at Sasuke as Sakura just grins, and Naruto stares with a blank expression on his face. He's probably already forgotten the password.

"Just how long have you been waiting to use that one?" I can't help asking, finding the password to be ridiculously long and well thought out. "Is that something you've spent time thinking about before? I don't believe you came up with that in thirty seconds."

"I think it's brilliant Sasuke!" Sakura chirps adoringly, not noticing as Sasuke pulls a face a t me. "I've already got it memorized too."

"Congratulations" I snap at Sakura, "You finally did something right."

Sakura looks as though she's been slapped in the face, the girl staring at me through wide eyes. She quickly looks away though, biting her lower lip and curling her hands up in her lap.

"Uhhh, have you got one that's a little shorter?" Naruto asks dumbly, to which I nod my head and wave a hand at Naruto. While I can remember the password, I have to agree with the blonde idiot. It's unnecessarily long.

"No Naruto" Sakura insists, her head snapping up at the mere thought of changing precious Sasuke's plan. "That's the answer."

"Yeah Naruto" I tell him in a mocking tone. "Do what the Boss says."

Sasuke's eyebrow begins to twitch with annoyance, something that makes me smirk. Good, I hope he's getting irritated. His bossy attitude is annoying me and no one tells me what to do.

"Come on Naruto!" Sakura complains. "Didn't you get it already? Sasuke and I memorized it so easily!"

"Yeah, but I just thought this was gonna be a password" Naruto grumbles, crossing his arms, "And not a pass speech....."

I can't help the faint giggle that betrays me by escaping my lips at Naruto's words, before I slap a hand over my mouth, everyone turning to stare at me in shock. I lower my hand and glare right back at them, before looking away and crossing my arms.

"What......What was that noise you just made Ashley?" Naruto asks, dumbfounded. I squint my eyes, trying to avoid the astonished gazes of my teammates.

"I have no idea what you're talking about" I growl stubbornly. Dammit, I never giggle! It's not like me to do something so stupid!

"No I think......" Sakura trails off for a moment, her mouth pulling up into a faint smile, "I think you definitely giggled just then."

"Nope" I defend through clenched teeth. "I definitely did nothing of the sort."

"I didn't think it was possible" Sasuke murmurs, eyes glued to my face as he shakes his head in disbelief.

Just as I open my mouth to protest, Naruto suddenly jumps up and begins dancing in a circle, laughing. I glare up at him coldly.

"What the hell are you doing you idiot?" I growl irritably.

"I'm the first person to make you laugh!" he chuckles happily, waving his arms in the air. "It was me! I made you laugh! Ha haha ha haaa ha!"

"I did not laugh!" I shout desperately, clenching my fists. Sakura squints creepily at me, pursing her lips in thought.

"Yes you did Ashley" she whispers cheekily. "You're actually human enough to laugh! Who knew?!"

What have I done?..........